Abbotsford police officer to be charged with obstruction

Abbotsford Police Const. Nathan Brown will be charged with obstruction of justice, following an APD investigation into whether he crashed a police cruiser while impaired by alcohol.

On April 14, Brown had the authorization to drive an unmarked police vehicle home from work. He stopped on the way home at a facility run by the Police Union for use by its members, said APD Const. Ian MacDonald.

Later, the officer collided with a pole and caused moderate damage to the police vehicle while driving home.

One aspect of the subsequent criminal investigation was on how forthcoming the member was when he reported the incident to the APD.

MacDonald said the APD forwarded the results of its investigation to Crown, which determined to proceed with he obstruction charge based on the discrepancies that existed between the facts of the event and the initial explanation provided by the officer.

The Police Act investigation into the matter is continuing. Constable Brown remains suspended from duty. He has worked for the Abbotsford Police Department for four and a half years.